In this connection the invention shall include disc brakes which either comprise a sliding caliper or a fixed caliper, which overlap one or more brake discs. Mainly but not exclusively the invention relates to disc brakes of the spot-type.
Disc brakes, in particular for heavy load trucks, are known with different configurations, both with respect to the type of the actuation mechanism, with respect to the way of the transmission of the braking force onto one or several brake discs and with respect to the type of the adjustment for compensating the brake lining wear.
With respect to the brake actuation mechanism, the present invention shall preferably, but not exclusively, relate to a single tappet design as it is known e.g. from International patent application WO 2011/113554 A2 of the applicant, in which the elements of the return mechanism and the adjustment mechanism are incorporated into the tappet design and surrounded by the unit consisting of the outer and inner sleeves, which both form part of the adjustment mechanism and thus brake actuation mechanism. The adjustment mechanism incorporated therein is driven by a rotatable lever, which introduces the clamping force from an actuator into the brake actuation mechanism. The rotatable lever is arranged such that the introduction of the clamping force into the elements of the brake actuation mechanism, e.g. the thrust element and the adjuster, is directed more or less in axial direction in relation to the brake disc, i.e. in a direction substantially parallel to the rotation axis of the brake disc; the lever thus basically rotates towards the brake disc.
In contrast thereto, in a radial-type brake the rotatable lever is arranged in such a way that the clamping force is introduced into the brake actuation mechanism perpendicularly with respect to the brake disc axis, i.e. the lever basically rotates towards the brake disc axis. In this regard, the present invention shall refer to disc brakes of the radial type.
Independent from the actual design of the brake actuation mechanism to be employed in this connection, the invention aims for a new configuration and arrangement of the rotatable lever, which allows the adaptation of the disc brake, in particular with respect to the external position of an actuator, to different spatial constraints being present in different types of vehicles.